Sunday 23rd November 2025

… we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
Romans 8:17 (NIV)

Lessons from the Suffering Church

A week ago I had the privilege of meeting the Anglican Archbishop of Myanmar, Stephen Than, whom I had previously met when helping with the Crosslinks School of Biblical Preaching in Myanmar.

It’s always a privilege to meet believers from other cultures (and to read about believers from other times) because they see things differently and so shine a light on things in our culture, including our Christian culture, that we haven’t quite seen correctly. There were two particular things that struck me from the interview with Archbishop Stephen.

First was when he recounted how he had become a Christian, when imprisoned as a young man for his political activism. It was Christmas time and, from his prison cell, he could hear the bells of the churches ringing. He had been brought up in a Christian home, but he suddenly realised he wasn’t a real Christian because he was afraid to die – in contrast to other prisoners who were Christians and faced that possibility with calm.

Would that be one of the things we would list as marks of being a genuine Christian, that we’re not afraid to die, because we know we will “depart and be with Christ, which is better by far” (see Philippians 1:23). We may rightly fear the process of dying, which may be both difficult and painful. But we have no need to fear death itself.

The second comment that brought me up short, because it’s hard to imagine a western Christian thinking it, was when Archbishop Stephen said he was grateful to God for the suffering they’re experiencing as Christians in Myanmar because it will make them real Christians. Again, his great concern was for Christians to be real Christians.

We tend to think that suffering should be avoidable, or overcome-able, not least because we have virtually eliminated many kinds of suffering. But such is our desire to avoid suffering that we can easily compromise on our walk with the Lord. I know I’ve done that.

Instead, we should be like the apostle Peter in our thinking: “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith – of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined through fire – may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:6-7).

Prayer
Lord, dare I ask you to give me a faith worth more than gold? I know it will cost me. Amen.

Yours warmly, in Christ,
Chris Hobbs (Senior Minister)